YAPPIE: THE MUSICAL
an original musical concept production
Yappie (a combination of YAP, a young Asian professional, and yuppie) follows the story of Grace, a young Asian professional living her best life in the corporate world. Or is she? Passed over for a promotion, Grace finds herself in the unlikeliest of places: auditioning for a musical. Having spent most of her life living up to the expectations of her family, Grace begins to question who she is, where she belongs, and what it means to be Asian American. Written by Jenny C. Lares, composed by Bobby Ge, and music directed by Roger Wu Fu, "Yappie: The Musical" promises to be a fun journey asking hard questions about identity & stereotypes with tons of empathy, warmth and lots of laughs.
Produced by Donna Ibale & Roger Wu Fu, and made possible with a generous Dean’s Incentive Grant from Peabody Institute, Peabody Institute's LAUNCHPad Grant, Marin Alsop's Alsop Entrepreneurial Award for Conductors, and in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University, "Yappie: The Musical" is set for a full-stage premiere in the near future.
Concept album, featuring our main 4 numbers fully mastered and produced, now available!
"Yappie: The Musical" seeks to explore the experience of Asian American artists in traditional and non-traditional artistic spaces and mediums, offering critique and insight on issues of diversity, representation, experience, and identity as it relates to aspects including but not limited to musical theatre. The project and organization was founded after a particularly controversial incident involving a local Baltimore theatre company’s casting of multiple “Asian” roles with a full cast of Caucasian artists in the operetta “The Mikado”; what followed was a string of conversations that led to the question of why Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) artists were underrepresented in theatre, yet fully active in the acting/theatre scene in Baltimore.
Beyond the goal of putting together and premiering an entirely new musical, "Yappie: The Musical"'s greater purpose is to foster dialogue, communication, and understanding between Asian American artists and the world of theatre, through the building of community between Peabody Institute, Johns Hopkins University Homewood, and the city of Baltimore at large. The project is highly innovative in its artistic mission of bringing issues of race/ethnicity as seen in theatre to a modern perspective, to question whether or not certain sociocultural norms of the past should continue to remain in the standard theatre repertoire.
At its core, "Yappie: The Musical" is a commentary on not only Asian American identity but on the notion of cultural belonging and its impact on identity formation. Drawing from vast collections of stories and experiences from real-life individuals, the musical hopes to tell a unique perspective on how we navigate our cultural expectations in our every-day lives.
With a wildly successful workshop premiere in October 2019 to a sold-out venue with standing room only, the core team for "Yappie: The Musical" has been hard at work to finish preparations for a full, mainstage premiere originally slated for Spring 2020. We are watching carefully for updates of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the safety and health of our team and audiences our top priority. Please continue to check-in for updates for future plans to put the work on stage in its full capacity!
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'ONE PATH'
video release of first track for Yappie the Musical album
released 4/16/2021